HELL ON EARTH FOR ANIMALS IN KOREA

In Defense of Animals (IDA) has learned that two million South Korean
dogs are electrocuted, strangled, or bludgeoned to death each year. Then
they're boiled, skinned, browned by a torch, chopped up and eaten. All
of this cruelty and suffering is enough to make you sick.

Where do the dogs come from?

Thirty percent are stolen from families that love them. Most are homeless
dogs, captured by butchers and sold in open markets.

The tragic reality is that authorities are giving the dog meat trade
their silent blessing by turning a blind eye to this outrageous bloodbath
even though Korean law forbids the sale and consumption of dog meat. The
country's Animal Protection Law, which was passed in 1991 considers dogs
to be "domestic pets.

Now, however -- with the unspoken blessing of the government, greedy,
unscrupulous dog traders in South Korea propagate the myth that canine
meat increases male sexual prowess and general health. This illegal industry
has organized itself well. It bribes government officials and police,
hires thugs to intimidate animal welfare campaigners, and persuades newspapers
to extol the "virtues" of dog meat.

Although the vast majority of Koreans don't eat dog meat, official figures
indicate there are at least 6,484 stores nationwide dealing in this horrific
trade.

"It's inconceivable to me that a being we consider 'man's best friend'
could be so brutally killed, skinned, and butchered." --Elliot M.
Katz, DVM

"I asked about the eating of dogs and was told over an over that
it didn't happen anymore. You can imagine my shock and horror upon getting
lost in one of the huge markets in downtown Taegu. I looked down and saw
the head of a dog with its legs stuffed in its mouth. I saw limbs that
were skinned. Everywhere I turned there were dogs in cages. The smell
was overwhelming. That market, that sweltering hot August day, was what
I envisioned hell to be like." –An American teacher in South
Korea

The fate of the innocent...

In spite of a 1991 law which prohibits consumption of dogs and cats,
a flourishing industry exists within the markets of Korea. Illegal and
unsanitary dog farms are hidden away in the countryside where breeders
raise their stock for butchers.